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To: Scrutator
Can you cite an authority for it, or is it only your personal hunch?

I'll overlook the belligerent tone, and presume you ask with an open mind.

"Therefore as by the offence of one [judgment came] upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one [the free gift came] upon all men unto justification of life." -- Romans 5:18

There are many passages which talk about the remission of sin in the universal sense, such as this one:

"The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. " ("World"=Kosmos) -- John 1:29

These don't say "some of the sin of the world," or otherwise qualify it. The gift is given to ALL men. A few passages say that stuff along the lines of God taking away the sin of those that believe; that is so we can know the means of our salvation, not to say it is given only to a certain group. Keep in mind this passage:

"Know the LORD: for they shall ALL know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more."

So, there is no man whose sins are not forgiven. Even those who crucified Christ, their sins were forgiven. They showed no signs of repentence, but rather their sins were forgiven before they were even finish being committed.

If the sins of the entire world are forgiven, and if the sins of every man are forgiven, are all sins forgiven? No. (Please read very carefully to see the distinctions made so that this is not a contradiction!) While a man may be forgiven of all other sins, there remains one sin for which forgiveness is offered, but which can not be forgiven: the refusal to accept forgiveness. The gift is given to all; it is not accepted by all.

So who is condemned? "And this is the condemnation; that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."

Notice, this isn't about belief; they know OF the light; they reject it.
52 posted on 01/30/2004 8:30:43 AM PST by dangus
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To: dangus
Post 52 was beautiful. Thank you.
69 posted on 01/30/2004 5:19:55 PM PST by Vets_Husband_and_Wife
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To: dangus
“Many are called, but few are chosen (Matthew 22:14)."

“Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.” (from Romans 9)

Verses 1 Thessalonians 5:9 and Acts 13:48 both say Christian believers are "appointed to" salvation and eternal life. Both passages, in their context and textual statements exclude this appointment from being given to everybody (and logic would argue for only some being appointed since not all are saved and an appointment is an act of decree). At the Garden of Gethsemene, Jesus prayed for the salvation of some people, not everyone. Why would Jesus do this if it was God's will to save everyone? This supports the conclusion that Jesus did not die for everyone, but only a group of predestined people. It says in John 17:1-2:

"Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: 'Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.'"

Another predestination passage, Ephesians 1:4-5, says, "For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will." In 1 Peter 2:6, Jesus is referred to as a "chosen cornerstone." In verses 7-9, it states this to believer:

"Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone," and, "A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall." They stumble because they disobey the message-- which is also what they were destined for. But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

2 Thessalonians 2:13 gives comfort to believers by saying, "But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth." God chose people to be saved. Names were written into the Book of Life from the foundation of the world (Revelation 17:8).

It says in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” The Gospel of salvation in Christ comes from the Holy Spirit. This only makes sense because it is a spiritual (Spirit-given) truth. Scripture declares God chooses to use the “foolishness of preaching to save (1 Corinthians 1:21).” The Gospel is what is preached to the nations and if preaching is foolishness to human minds, the spiritual truth of the Gospel has to be even bigger foolishness to people without the Spirit, everyone not saved. As Romans 3:11 declares, "There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God." This is a quotation the author uses from the OT, which proves the continuity of the total depravity of man from the fall of Adam to the current dispensation of grace through Christ. Romans 8:7 shows that the sinful, carnal man does not have the ability to submit to God's law and is hostile to God. The Psalmist admits he was sinful from conception (Psalm 51:5). Every inclination of the heart of man is wicked (Genesis 8:21).

The dry bones in Ezekiel 36-37 only come alive by direct command of God; they are spiritually dead and can't come alive by some "choice" they make.
100 posted on 02/01/2004 1:37:28 PM PST by rwfromkansas ("Men stumble over the truth, but most pick themselves up as if nothing had happened." Churchill)
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